I had stated that earlier this month that I was going to reminisce about my all time great moments with people of color, rather, my black history. Trust, there are some whoopers or, in honor of black history month, some Whoopis. Some funny and some downright depressing. so I think to avoid the nickname Rodrig-woe, I will stick to the lighthearted moments. Sort of like watching the Cosby Show but with the neighborhood mexican kid.
Where's Sondra?
Many moons ago, my mom, Mary, decided to throw caution to the wind and get caught up in the radical movement of interracial relationships that swept the early 90s with such movies as Made in America, Jungle Fever and The Bodyguard starring my girl Whitney. I never thought Mary was one to purchase a "swirl" cone but sure enough before I could say NAACP, Curtis "Moe" McKinney became a regular around our household that eventually moved in. Here are some descriptors for Moe:
-loved cookouts
-didn't smell regular
-loved hot links
-had children named Reggie, Tyron and Mokey
-loved eating wings and never shared
-all around jackass
the Whoopster!
I really disliked him. It really had nothing to do with race or how his eyes seemed yellow sometimes but it had everything to do with him going out of his way to embarrass the shit out my sister and I when we were growing up. He would drive us to school in his '87 Chevy Jalopy and honk the horn the whole way to get everyone's attention and then dump us off in front of West Elementary School to be stared at like circus freaks. It sort of felt like the Scarlet Letter but in this case it was a black "A" which stood for affirmative action.
All of this came flooding back to me when I was lucky enough to catch the Khloe Kardashian and Lamar Odom commercial for their new fragrance Desegregation. It reminded me of how grossed out I felt whenever Mary and Moe would be affectionate with one another. It's really not that surprising that my short busty 65 year old Latina mother does in fact remind me of that Armenian transvestite linebacker Khloe Kardashian. If only Mary would have landed a basketball player instead of a roofer.
Unbreak my bowels